Gender Gap Widens in Pennsylvania’s House Primaries: The Battle for Women’s Representation in November

Pennsylvania’s House primaries of 2022 have brought to light a stark contrast in the number of women candidates between the Republican and Democratic sides. While 12 out of 25 Democratic candidates are women, only two out of 19 GOP candidates are women. This is despite an increase in the number of Republican women running in primaries in recent years.

The competitiveness of races is a crucial factor in electing more women, as seen in the case of Alfeia Goodwin in the 5th District. Despite being the sole Republican candidate on the ballot, she faces a tough challenge against incumbent Rep. Mary Gay Scanlon, who has a strong hold on the safe blue district. On the other hand, Maria Montero, an attorney, is running against state Rep. Ryan Mackenzie and veteran Kevin Dellicker in the GOP primary for Pennsylvania’s 7th District race. Although this district is a target for Republicans in November, former President Trump has not endorsed any candidate in the primary race. However, Trump surrogate Vivek Ramaswamy has shown support for Montero. Notably, Montero has not received endorsements from key GOP women’s groups such as VIEW PAC, Maggie’s List, E-Pac or Winning for Women despite their mission to support women in primaries.

In conclusion, while there has been an increase in the number of Republican women running in primaries recently, electing more women is still dependent on how competitive their races are and whether they have a chance of winning in November.